Fubo shareholders give nod for combination with Disney's Hulu amid ongoing DoJ review

[Department of Justice sign, Washington DC, USA]
robertcicchetti

Sports-focused live TV streaming service Fubo (NYSE:FUBO [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/FUBO]) has received approval from its shareholders at a special meeting for the company to combine with Disney's Hulu (NYSE:DIS [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/DIS]), according to a public statement.

Once the deal closes, Disney will own a controlling stake of 70% in Fubo, and the company's existing management team, led by co-founder and CEO David Gandler, will operate the newly combined Fubo and Hulu + Live TV businesses.

"Fubo and Hulu + Live TV will continue to be available to consumers as separate offerings post-closing and will facilitate an enhanced choice of programming packages addressing a variety of consumer preferences at attractive price points," Fubo said on Tuesday.

The deal is still under review by the Justice Department, who are probing whether the combination would unduly concentrate the market for sports streaming. The DoJ's probe came after Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) raised concerns that the deal would be anticompetitive and drive prices higher for consumers.

In January, Fubo announced its merger with Hulu to create a new sports and broadcast venture that will cater to over 6.2M customers in North America. As part of the deal, Fubo agreed to resolve all litigation with Disney and ESPN related to Venu Sports and also settled with Fox (FOX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/FOX]) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/WBD]). The trio agreed to pay Fubo $220M to put things behind them.

Once the deal closes, all of Fubo’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock will be automatically converted into issued and outstanding Class A shares that will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "FUBO."

Fubo expects the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of this year, or the first quarter of 2026.

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